Journal writing gives students a chance to express themselves. They do not have to worry about being graded on correct grammar, spelling or any other English language rule. When giving students a topic, include some of the basic six questions -- who, what, where, when, why and how. For example, a topic might ask, "Where would you like to go that you have never been and why?" This topic already asks three of the six questions - who, where and why. The students can elaborate on the other three. However, if you just tell them to write and not think about answering anything but the topic, many will answer the six questions naturally.
When students write their own stories, they get to use their imagination. Their imaginations reflect on their personality and creativity. However, before they write a story, they should brainstorm what main events they want to include, how many characters they want to include, the plot and what conflicts may occur. They may want to put a circle around the event that makes up the climax of the story. Once they have listed all of their main events, they can put them in chronological order and begin writing the story.
Poetry, like story writing, often expresses ideas, but poetry usually also expresses feelings. For example, in "The World Is Not a Pleasant Place to Be" by Nikki Giovanni, the poet expresses loneliness by concluding her poem,"the world is not a pleasant place to be without someone." In "Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, the couple expresses their love in many different poetic formats. In English class, give students a chance to show their feelings through a variety of poetry methods.
When many students hear the word essay, they cringe. Writing an essay can be enjoyable for students if they are able to write about their interests. An essay has an introduction, a body, and a conclusion and are written to inform, persuade or entertain. Many English teachers believe that five-paragraph essays are the easiest to teach. While a five paragraph essay gives structure, www.you-can-teach-writing.com warns, "You must capitalize on the value of the expository writing process for beginners without implying that is the only way to write or suggesting that all essays have just five paragraphs." Once an English teacher knows his students, he should be able to create a list of topics that would satisfy each of his student's interests.